The present invention is directed to low calorie, substantially fat-free food products having exceptional organoleptic mouthfeel characteristics simulating fat containing food products, such as substantially fat-free, fat-mimetic frozen desserts, viscous dressings, and pourable dressings.
Very significant technical effort has been directed over many years to the development of reduced fat or substantially fat-free food products which possess a smooth and creamy mouthfeel, texture and lubricity accurately simulating the texture and mouthfeel of edible fat containing food products.
Such efforts include the use of various types of undigestible fat-like materials such as sucrose polyesters and polyglycerol polyesters which pass through the digestive system without absorption. Substantial work has also been carried out over an extended period of time with bulking agents such as powdered and microcrystalline cellulose in fat-containing and reduced fat food products. In this regard, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,067,037, 3,141,875, 3,157,518, 3,251,824, 3,388,119, 3,539,365, 3,573,058, 3,684,523, 3,947,604, 4,199,368 and 4,231,802, 4,346,120, 4,400,406, 4,427,701 and 4,421,778 relate to the preparation, or use of various types of cellulose in various food products. Such cellulose materials have been used or proposed for reduced fat or substantially fat-free food products. However, as the fat content is reduced in food products containing substantial levels of cellulose products such as microcrystalline cellulose, adverse organoleptic effects such as a mouth-coating or astringency sensations, and a lack of a well-rounded organoleptic sensation corresponding to that provided by conventional fat-containing food products such as ice cream, and viscous and pourable dressings, tend to become more pronounced.
High pressure treatment and attrition of microcrystalline cellulose, and the use of gums to prevent reagglomeration of crystalline cellulose particles has been used to prepare "colloidal" grades of microcrystalline cellulose having a high proportion of the cellulose in particles of submicron-size. High pressure homogenization of fibrous cellulose pulp, as opposed to microcrystalline cellulose, has also been used to produce a "microfibrillated" fibrous product for food product utilization [e.g., see U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,089,981, 4,143,163, 4,341,807, 4,374,702, 4,481,076, 4,481,077 and 4,659,388].
Microcrystalline cellulose has been used in low and reduced calorie food formulations as both a carbohydrate thickening agent and as a fat replacer, with powdered products of relatively large particle size (e.g., 15-90 micrometer length) utilized for carbohydrate reduction and colloidal grades of submicron size being used to reduce fat. However, as the fat content is reduced in food products containing substantial levels of microcrystalline cellulose, adverse organoleptic effects such as a mouth-coating or astringency sensations, and a lack of a well-rounded organoleptic sensation corresponding to that provided by conventional fat-containing food products, tend to become more pronounced, and accordingly, fully acceptable fat-free food products have not generally been provided. In addition, microcrystalline cellulose may produce an astringent or drying mouthfeel when used as a substantially full-fat replacement, which is deleterious to the acceptability of the product.
It is an object of the present invention to provide methods for the manufacture of novel, nutritious, low calorie, substantially fat-free food compositions such as frozen desserts and food dressings which have exceptional, smooth, creamy oil-like textures and well rounded fat mimetic mouthfeel characteristics, as well as desirable stability and functionality characteristics. It is a further object to provide novel, substantially fat-free food compositions such as frozen desserts, viscous food dressings and pourable dressings which have such characteristics. These and other objects of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description and the accompanying drawings.